Meet Our CEO
Tony Bernal
Tony has been with Transition Projects for twenty-five years! Some of his favorite things outside work include New Mexican Chile, Mission burritos, listening to Aretha Franklin, and rewatching episodes of the Mary Tyler Moore Show.
We’re so fortunate to have Tony leading the agency, and we hope you’ll take a minute to learn more about his Transition Projects journey in his own words.
What brought you to Transition Projects?
I came to Transition Projects after leaving a doctoral program in Texas. I thought I would stay with the agency for a year or so, but the work called to me so clearly, and this agency is so compelling that I have stayed all of the years.
What has your time been like?
I started as our volunteer and fundraising coordinator in my basement office at the Glisan Street Men’s Shelter. We had fewer than 50 employees in total and just a few sites. I eventually became the development director, public policy director, and various other roles until I was named Chief Executive Officer in October 2023.
What do Transition Projects and your work here mean to you?
There is no more important work in our community than the work that Transition Projects engages in daily. Over the years, the work has gotten much more challenging. People are coming to us with greater needs. They’re older, sicker, and have been on the streets longer. Meanwhile, housing is scarcer and costlier.
Khalil Gibran said this wonderful thing that sustains me—that work is love made visible. I think of it often when our challenges look steepest. We can only solve homelessness by loving each other, and our community, more. And the work that Transition Projects does every day is one opportunity to express that love for each other.